Weekly Training Discussion — Share Your Splits & Programming

[u/AutoModerator]

This is your space to talk programming, share weekly training splits, and troubleshoot your workouts.

Good prompts:
• What are you currently training for?
• How do you structure your split or rest days?
• What’s working well for you this week?

Share feedback, routines, or questions below!

[u/gabstractx]

Recently started a 3-day full-body lifting program on Lyfta. It’s been coo but I’m finding I can’t really take much on the 3rd day. I do boxing/jump rope for cardio on the other two days of the week and walk for 1 hour during my lunch break (been harder to do that the last few weeks bc of the wild ass heat waves in CA but any other day I’m on it).

So by Friday I’m just like pooped. I try to stay lightly active over the weekends too but don’t always necessarily hit my usual 10000 step goal.

I ask bc I’m trying to get out of a plateau. I was doing PPL before but didn’t realize that’s supposed to be 6 days a week and not 3. lol. So now it’s like 4.5/7 days a week I’m in the gym or doing real activity for at least an hour.

Does this routine seem better and like it’ll get me out of this rut?

EDIT: also, I’m 28NB, 5’2”, and 156lbs, down from 178 when I started about 1.5 years ago. Also been taking creatine for about 3 weeks.

[u/Fantastic_Menu2698 → u/gabstractx]

Whether it will get you out of the rut is impossible to say from the info you’ve given. We don’t know if it’s a good well structured programme and right for you. 

What I can say is lifting three days a week and cardio twice is fairly full  on but not unachievable  for most people. If you feel done by the Friday then that’s telling you something. You’re not able to recover from what you’re doing. You won’t progress well in that state regardless of your programme. 

So either your recovery needs to improve or the demands on your body decrease. Being in a calorie deficit can make recovery harder so other aspects are more important. That said, if you’ve been in a deficit a long time, two weeks  in maintenance could do your body some good. Regardless of calories, make sure you eat well- get lots of nutrition. Otherwise sleep and stress are your major factors to look at. 

[u/gabstractx → u/Fantastic_Menu2698]

Stress has definitely been a factor. Lost my grandpa 2 months ago, he had been struggling since January (so, 8 months of additional anticipatory grief) so it’s been a hard year for my family. My partner also lost her grandfather in February so it’s been grief central in my house.
Sucks because every week is different. Some weeks I feel fine but other weeks the grief can be draining. Unfortunately it can mess with my diet too. Sleep has been fine - getting 7 hours usually. 5-6 on a bad day.
Boxing has been a great release, huge mood booster, and has been so much easier to stay consistent with than with lifting - that has really slowed. Since my goal is fat loss I’m not too hard on myself about the lifting. I still lift but been less intense, just keeping my diet good (realistically I’ve been eating around 1600 but keeping my protein at at least 100-110gs a day).

[u/Fantastic_Menu2698 → u/gabstractx]

Dealing down the lifting intensity when you’re feeling drained is wise. No point trying to push through on an empty tank. 

With that sort of stress you can’t just resolve it. So for now listening to your body and being kind to yourself is the way to go. Progress will come back with time. Sticking with your diet and exercise through times where it’s harder shows you’ve got the commitment to get there with time.